History Makers Reading List

Over the last two months, we have recognized dozens of people who changed the course of history. In honor of Black History Month, our social media accounts highlighted important Black figures in education, the arts, and beyond through our #historymakers hashtag. We continued using that hashtag through Women’s History Month and honored women from the United States and around the world. 

Some of the people we highlighted are household names. Others are people whose contributions aren’t always noticed. But they all have stories worth knowing. Below, we’ve provided a list of every children’s book that we recommended over the last two months, as well as the books that we recommended to learn more about Black and women’s history generally. We encourage you to read these books with your children or students, so that they can learn the stories of these incredible history makers. 

For each book, we included a link to Amazon to purchase. We encourage you to link your account with Amazon Smile, so that a small percentage of your purchases go to a charity of your choice. Once you sign up, you can select the Center for Creative Education for donation.

Black History Month Recommendations 

1. The ABCs of Black History by Rio Cortez: https://amzn.to/3JWv1Qh
2. Black Is a Rainbow Color by Angela Joy: https://amzn.to/3tQo39L
3. A Child’s Introduction to African American History: The Experiences, People, and Events That Shaped Our Country by Jabari Asim: https://amzn.to/3wRRb2d
4. Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History by Vashti Harrison: https://amzn.to/3tTbydy
5. The Story of Black History Box Set: Biography Books for New Readers by Rockridge Press: https://amzn.to/38gskep
6. Lift as You Climb: The Story of Ella Baker by Patricia Hruby Powell: https://amzn.to/38lasPH
7. Jump at the Sun: The True Life Tale of Unstoppable Storycatcher Zora Neale Hurston by Alicia D. Williams: https://amzn.to/3uPeBTA
8. Zora Hurston and the Chinaberry Tree by William Miller: https://amzn.to/3DsK6GX
9. Mary McLeod Bethune: Education and Equality by Heather E. Schwartz: https://amzn.to/3NMp76G
10. Mary McLeod Bethune by Eloise Greenfield: https://amzn.to/3Lyuogf
11. She Was the First!: The Trailblazing Life of Shirley Chisholm by Katheryn Russell-Brown and Eric Velasquez: https://amzn.to/3uLGb3O
12. Shirley Chisholm Dared: The Story of the First Black Woman In Congress by Alicia D. Williams: https://amzn.to/3LrG9F9

Women’s History Month Recommendations

1. Good Night stories for Rebel Girls: 100 Tales of Extraordinary Women by Elena Favilli and Francesca Cavallo: https://amzn.to/3DtT7zb
2. Fantastically Great Women Who Changed the World by Kate Pankhurst: https://amzn.to/38gun25
3. She Persisted: 13 American Women Who Changed The World by Chelsea Clinton: https://amzn.to/3DyQtbB
4. Herstory: 50 Women and Girls Who Shook Up the World by Katherine Halligan: https://amzn.to/3iSDc4c
5. Women Who Dared: 52 Stories of Fearless Daredevils, Adventurers, and Rebels by Linda Skeers: https://amzn.to/3tUxmFR
6. Frida Kahlo and Her Animalitos by Monica Brown: https://amzn.to/3qR1PTg
7. Frida Kahlo: A Kid’s Book About Expressing Yourself Through Art by Mary Nhin: https://amzn.to/3Lvv5Xo
8. Rise!: From The Caged Bird to Poet of the People, Maya Angelou by Bethany Hegedus: https://amzn.to/3iONMcv
9. Maya Angelou: Journey of the Heart by Jayne Pettit: https://amzn.to/36DAhtN
10. Fanny Marion Jackson Coppin First Black Female Principal by L.A. Johnson: https://amzn.to/3qLLLSL
11. Malala’s Magic Pencil by Malala Yousafzai: https://amzn.to/3Lzfvu5
12. For the Right to Learn: Malala Yousazai’s Story by Rebecca Ann Langston-George: https://amzn.to/3qQ9RvL
13. Me… Jane by Patrick McDonnell: https://amzn.to/3LxUnEf
14. The Watcher: Jane Goodall’s Life with the Chimps by Jeanette Winter: https://amzn.to/3IV8emo
15. Hedy Lamarr’s Double Life: Hollywood Legend and Brilliant Inventor by Laurie Wallmark: https://amzn.to/3DpzlVy
16. Hedy and Her Amazing Invention by Jan Wahl: https://amzn.to/3NByIgA
17. My Little Golden Book About Betty White by Deborah Hopkinson: https://amzn.to/3tScvTA
18. That’s Betty!: The Story of Betty White by Gregory Bonsignore: https://amzn.to/35q5ZKc